They were ubiquitous on the walls of homes in the 1970s, but over the years macrame owls have all but disappeared.

Annie Zalezsak is the manager of the Macrame Owl Sanctuary in British Columbia, an organisation with a mission to "raise awareness of the plight of the Macrame Owl and to remove any threat of the Macrame Owl becoming an endangered species."

"As a child, having seen them around, I didn't really pay much attention to them."

But in a discussion with her friend and now partner in the owl sanctuary, Vivienne Foley, she began to reminisce about macrame.

"They were rampant in the late 60s and early 70s, all over the world, but they started to diminish in the late 70s and only rarely do you see them now."

"I love their quirkiness, their sense of humour. Every time you look at one you want to laugh."

"They make a friendly companion in the home and they're wonderful to have around."

Zalezsak says there are over 500 types of macrame owl, and the sanctuary is committed to giving a home to as many as possible.

"We're hoping that we can gather up funds to set up a public sanctuary but at this stage that is quite a big dream."

The sanctuary's website, which declares that 'nothing is too silly', says its mission is to "save the Macrame Owl from extinction".